Congratulations to Miguel Fernández, MD, Associate Professor of Surgery and Director of the South Texas Poison Center, whose abstract, 'The Comparative Clinical Effects of Cocaine and Amphetamines', has been accepted for presentation at the May 2010 XXX International Congress of the European Association of Poisons Centres and Clinical Toxicologists (EAPCCT), in Bordeaux, France. The abstract will be published in the peer-reviewed journal entitled Clinical Toxicology. | More about Dr. Fernández | South Texas Poison Center (3-3-10)

Congratulations to Miguel Fernández, MD, Associate Professor of Surgery and Director of the South Texas Poison Center, and Lizette Villarreal, MA, Assistant Director, South Texas Poison Center, whose abstracts, 'Health Care Disparities in Delivering Poison Center Services to Spanish Speakers in Texas' and 'Poison Center Data: Complete or Completely Inaccurate? How to Improve Accuracy in Data Recording' have been selected for presentation at the May 2010 XXX International Congress of the European Association of Poisons Centres and Clinical Toxicologists (EAPCCT), in Bordeaux, France. The abstracts will also be published in the peer-reviewed journal entitled Clinical Toxicology. | More about Dr. Fernández | More about Ms. Villarreal | South Texas Poison Center (3-3-10)

Congratulations to George M. Layton, MD, South Texas Poison Center Specialist in Poison Information, whose abstract, 'Increasing Poison Center Case Reports of Male Enhancement Supplements in Texas' (Fernandez MC, Forrester MB) has been accepted by the Special Interest Group on Herbs & Dietary Supplements for presentation at the 2009 North American College of Clinical Toxicology Annual Conference in San Antonio, TX. | South Texas Poison Center (6-16-09)

Congratulations to presenters at 2009 North American College of Clinical Toxicology: This year in an effort to increase research done here by faculty and staff at the South Texas Poison Center, our center submitted 7 abstracts to the North American College of Clinical Toxicology which will be held here in San Antonio in September. This annual conference provides an opportunity for physicians, pharmacists, nurses and scientists from around the world to participate in the sharing of information on a wide variety of toxicological issues.

Hundreds of abstracts are submitted from researchers and poison centers around the world. Six out of the seven abstracts we submitted were accepted for presentation at this year’s annual meeting. Lizette Villarreal, Assistant Director of the South Texas Poison Center, would like to congratulate our faculty and staff for their hard work. All abstracts will now be written up for submission to a journal publication.

• Cynthia L. Teter, PharmD; C. Lizette Villarreal, MA. 'The Impact of HIPAA on the Delivery of Poison Center Services'
• Ricardo Hernandez, MD; C. Lizette Villarreal, MA; Miguel C. Fernández, MD. 'Poison Center Data Identifies Increase in Energy Drink Consumption and Teens as Highest At-Risk Group'
• Miguel C. Fernández, MD; Alfredo González, RN. 'Ethiopian Mountain Viper Envenomation In South Texas'
• Darelle E. Hinson, RN; C. Lizette Villarreal, MA; Miguel C. Fernández, MD; Leslie M. DeHart, RN. 'The Impact of Nuisance Callers on Poison Center Services and Staff Efficacy'
• George M. Layton, MD; Miguel C. Fernández, MD; Mathias B. Forrester, BS. 'Increasing Poison Center Case Reports of Male Enhancement Supplements in Texas'
• Leslie M. DeHart, RN; Darelle E. Hinson, RN. 'Automation and the Hazard of Human Error Results in Unexpected Toxicity during Routine Blood Donation'

Miguel Fernández, MD, Medical Director of the South Texas Poison Center, interviewed by KWEX-TV for A Su Salud on the subject of Poisons in the home: We all have many common items in our homes that we don't think of as poisons. Dr. Fernández discussed how families can identify some of these common household poisons (cosmetics, charcoal, soaps, plants, etc.) and how to protect their children from ingesting these items. South Texas Poison Center website | More about Dr. Fernández (4-23-09)

Miguel Fernández, MD, Medical Director of the South Texas Poison Center, spoke on behalf of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Poison Control Program (Health Services Administration) at the 2009 Annual Meeting and Exposition of the American Pharmacists Association in San Antonio. The topic of Dr. Fernández's was 'Improving Patient Safety: Success Stories of the Patient Safety and Clinical Pharmacy Services Collaborative and the Poison Centers Role in Patient Safety.' (4-14-09)

Miguel Fernández, MD, Medical Director of the South Texas Poison Center, interviewed about Texas Legislature House Bill 23, regarding meth lab disclosure: This bill would add a meth lab disclosure requirement to leases. "We have a saying in toxicology that there is nothing that is not a poison," Dr. Fernández said. "It's the dose that makes the poison. And this really is pertinent to this scenario." HB 23 adds to current law regarding disclosures to homebuyers, with a further requirement for landlords to inform renters before a lease is signed that the property had been used as a methamphetamine lab. Unlike asbestos or lead contamination in a home, the effects of methamphetamine contamination may vary widely. Read story in Express-News | More about Dr. Fernández (4-3-09)

Congratulations to South Texas Poison Center Assistant Director Lizette Villarreal, and Director, Miguel Fernández, MD, on their successful submission for presentation of two abstracts: 'Addressing health care disparities in delivering poison center services to Spanish speakers in Texas,' has been accepted for poster presentation to the 3rd Annual Health Disparities Conference in New Orleans, LA, March 2009. Their abstract 'Regional poison center hourly call-taker staffing and call volume' has been accepted for poster presentation at the 29th International Congress of the European Association of Poison Centres and Clinical Toxicologists in Stockholm, Sweden, in May 2009. (3-12-09)

March 16-22 is National Poison Prevention Week: Dr. Miguel Fernández, MD, toxicologist and director of the South Texas Poison Center, reminds everyone of the services available 24/7 to the citizens of San Antonio, Bexar County and the South Texas region. Read HSC press release (3-18-08)

Miguel Fernández, MD, Asst Prof of Surgery and Director of the South Texas Poison Center, was interviewed on KENS-5's Sunday, Dec. 16, 2007, Great Day SA to discuss one of the hottest topics this holiday season - lead in kids' toys. View KENS-5 video. (12-19-07)

Miguel Fernández, MD, Asst Prof of Surgery and Director of the South Texas Poison Center, was interviewed on KENS-5's Great Day SA to discuss one of the hottest topics this holiday season - lead in kids' toys. (12-12-07)

Miguel Fernández, MD, Director, South Texas Poison Center, was interviewed on KENS-5 San Antonio's evening news regarding the CDC's recent warnings about elemental mercury in some antiques. Read San Antonio Express-News story. | Watch KENS-5 video. | CDC: Elemental Mercury Releases ... (7-9-07)

Miguel Fernández, MD, Director, South Texas Poison Center, served as a panel moderator and led a workshop entitled "Health Professions Education: Future Direction of Medical Curriculum Development," for the 11th Annual Conference of the National Hispanic Medical Association in March 2007. Other participants and presenters included Francisco Cigarroa, MD, President of UTHSCSA, and Leonel Vela, MD, Dean, Regional Academic Health Center in Harlingen. (4-19-07)

Congratulations to Miguel Fernández, MD, Director of the South Texas Poison Center who received the Mayoral Proclamation for National Poison Prevention Week on March 13, 2007 at the Joint Meeting of the Central Texas Society of Health System Pharmacists and the Bexar County Pharmacy Association. (3-17-07)